Apparatus for developing photographic ribbons



july 20 19262' 1,592,924

` F. CARBENAY APPARATUS FOR DEVELOPING PHOTOGRAPHIC'RIBBONS Filed August 29, 1921 2 Sheets-sheet l FERNAND CARBENAY July 20 1926. 1,592,924

' F. CARBENAY APPARATUS FOR DEVELOPING PHOTOGRAPHIC RIBBONS Filed August 29, 1921 2 Sheets-sheet 2 l mm m9 "n, honznoz FERNAND CARBENAY .Patented July-2o, 192e.l

z aannam) CABBENAY, or raars, ramon.

'A'PPARATUS FOB DEVELOPING PHOTOGBAPHIC BBBONS.

Application lied August 20, 1921,` Serial No. 496,540, and in lranoe September 14, 190.

The present inventionrelates toappa- OP ratus or machines arranged to deve photographic ribbons such as moving picture films, ribbons for continuously operat- 5 ing registering apparatus etc., i. e. in which the ribbon carrying the latent image is continuously fed to the apparatus and thus developed. The invention may also be used in developing the tape of photographic recorders, such as are employed in wireless and wire teleiraphy.

. In suc continuousl moving apparatus, it is necessary to vary t e time during which the ribbon is submerged in the developing bathV so as to obtain an image of regular in-` tensity, notwithstanding the fact that the sensitive material may have been exposed for varying lengths of time to allow for various conditions of. exposure (variations of the ex osure, variations in the actinism of the lig t,'etc. For this purpose, a connection -is estab shed, between the apparatus that feeds the ribbon into. the bath and the apparatus that moves it out of the bath orc '.dmarily at equal speed, making possible the momentary uncoupling of the two mechanisms `in a manner to ermit'one to lag behind or advance ahead of the other.

able ribbon, the ends of which are between these two mechanisms, 'will varyt Generally stated, this connection is established under the control of -two mechanisms, by means of a single driving shaft with which both mechanisms are connected` through the agenc of more or less rapidly and readily opera le AIn most of the apparatus of this type, the regulation of the. time during which the ribbon isl submerged in the developing fluid is accomplished at thebeginning of each operation, and cannot lie modified duringthe operation of, the apparatus. r

In accordance with the present invention, means are provided for making possible the .continuous and ready variation of-the time during which the movable ribbon is sub'- merged in the developing bath, and to accomplish this while the machine 1s in operation. Due to this arrangement, the operator may retard or accelerate the passage of the ribbon, depending on the showing of the picture developed.V

The inventionmay be carried into practice in a variety of ways. The accompanying illustrate of the 1n- Due to this arrangement, the length of the movvention for the purpose of exemplifying it and not limiting itsfscope, and to facilitate the 'understanding of the system.

Fig. 1 is a view in plan and partly in section of developing apparatus embodying the invention;

Fig. 2 is a view ratus in front elevation;

Figs.'3 and 4 are plan views of dcvelo ing apparatus comprising different forms o the invention; and

Fig. 5 is a detail view of the clutch controlling mechanism employed in the form of the invention shown Vin Fig. .4.

The ribbon 1 (Fig. 1) is moved into each ofthe developing baths 2 under the control of a `feeding roll 3. The ribbon is moved out of the bath in a similar manner-under the control of a take-up roll 4. lThe roll 3 is operatedby means of motor mechanism in any well-known manner, e. g. through the' agency of a belt 5 and the pulley 5. The same mechanism operates the take-up roll 4- through the agency of the pulleys 6 and 7, and belt 7. Y

In accordance with the-present invention, a differential arrangement ma be introduced, for exam le, between t e pulley -7 that receives the ving power and the take up roll 4 in the following manner:-

ofthe developing appa- A casing 8 carries'twobevel gears 9 and 9', called satellites. These gears intermesh .on one' hand with the primary bevel-gear 10 `:fastened to the pulley 7, and on the other hand, with the secondary bevel-gear 11 which is adapted to rotate the take-up roll 4. The differential casing may lbe rotated around the principal shaft at the will of the operator, e. g. by means of a toothed rim 12 operated by a gear-wheel 13 attached to the` handle 14, or in any other similar manner. It

-will be seen, therefore, that when the handle remains stationary, the take-up roll 4 is operated at the same speed as the feeding roll 3, whereby the length of ribbon between the two rolls orthe other, the speed of roll 3 will be dif- 'ferent from that vof roll 4, whereby thev ra mentof Fg. 1 may be adapted to control both the feeding and the take-up' rolls Y remains invariably the same. 'llVhen the handle is moved in one direction iio ofthe machine, its general use will be restijicted-to the'take up rolls re-l move the ribbon from the developer. The further improvements of Figs. 3 and 4 provide a more simple driving arrangement for the ribbon holding rolls. These improvements also contemplate the provision of a differential arrangement between the driven rolland the one that precedes it. In accordance with the improvements, the difference in the movements of the two rolls is not varied during the operation, but is determined prior to the operation and is effected upon the starting of the machine.

The mechanism in accordance with the improvements is arranged in the following manner: Means are provided for retarding the coupling between the controlling shaft and the driving shaft. The driving power may be transmitted e'i'therthrough a single shaft driving all the rolls. or by successively controlling a roll by the said shaftthrough the agency of an intermediate driving shaft.

Fig. 3 represents one exemplification of this feature, intermediate shafts being used. In this figure, 21 represents the feeding roll, 22 its shaft, 23 a coupling which is preferably elast-ic (cylindrical or conical gears, chains, etc.), 24 is a shaft controlling the feeding roll through the agency of clutch 23. In the drawing, this shaft is represented as an extension of the shaft of the roll, but such arrangement is not obligatory and may be varied depending on the type of coupling 23 that is adopted. The shaft 24 is suitably supported on the cross beams 25 and 26 which are rigid with the frame of the machine. A toothed wheel 27 is freely rotatable on the shaft 24, and carries a clutch member 28. This same shaft carries also a traveling clutch member 29 cooperating with 28 and adapted to slide in a longitudinal direction. In response to the rotationof this clutch member 29, the shaft 24 is also rotated, the connection between the two being provided in any well-known manner (a square section of the shaft in the path of the traveling cogwheel, a long key, etc.) The translating movement of the traveling clutch member is effected by means of an arm 30, one end of which forms a support 31 for the clutch member, and vthe other end 32 having the form of a screw-threaded halfcylinder engaging screw threads 33 on the shaft 35 through the agency of which the movement is transmitted from the driving mechanism to the gear 27. This shaft is supported in the cross-beams 25 cand 26 andis driven by any suitable means connecting 1t with the motorv mechanism. A ratchet wheel 36 and a chain 37 being shown for this purpose. The shaft 35 transmits its movement to the freely rotating toothed wheel 27 through the agency of the toothed wheel 38 rigidly connectedwith the shaft. This ensemble constitutes the mechanism I by means of which the ribbon feeding rpll 21 is operated. The next feeding roll 41 is driven by means of mechansm II which is like mechanism I and is driven. by the latter through the agency of the toothed wheels 39 and The wheel 39 is rigidly attached to the shaft 24 and the Wheel 56 is rigidly attached to the intermediate driving shaft 55 of the mechanism II. In this manner, all the constituting feeding rolls 21, 41, 61, 81, ctc. of the machine may be successively set in operation. The starting and the operation of the machine may now be easily understood. The end ofthe photographic ribbon to be ldeveloped is successively engaged by the rolls 21, 41, 61, 81, etc. Depending on the length of the ribbon that one desires to submerge in the bath ahead of each roll, the half nuts 32,` 52, 72, etc. are placed at a greater or lesser,- distance on the corresponding screws 33, 53, 73, etc., and the motor mechanism is started. The shaft 35 rotates and causes the traveling of arm 30 n and the cog-wheel 29. At the end of its travel. the cog-wheel 29 engages the toothed wheel 27 which is rotating under the control of the toothed wheel 38. The shaft 24 is now -rotated and rotates in turn the feeding roll 21. The ribbon is submerged in the bath by means of some kind of tensioning device, and the length of the submerged portions increases until the feeding roll 41 is started. The time when this occurs, depends on the position of the half nut 52 on the screw 53.

Fig. 4 represents another embodiment of the invention. In accordance with this arrangement, the motive power is transmitted directly to each feeding roll through the agency of a singletransverse shaft. In this figure, 21 represents the feeding roll to be controlled, 102 its shaft, 103 an elastic coupling, 104 a driving shaft supported in the cross-beams 25 and 26, as explained in connection with the previously described embodiment of the invention (Fig. 3). The shaft 104 is set in motion by means of a wheel 107 having spirally arranged teeth and attached to the shaft. This wheel is driven by means of a Wheel 108 located below the former and provided with spirally arranged teeth. The vertical plane of wheel 108 is at right angles to the vertical plano of wheel 107. By means of any suitable arrangement (snch as the one to be hereinafter set forth), the wheel 108 may be rigidly mounted on the main transmission shaft 109. In this manner, the transverse shaft 109 will drive the roll 21. The driving of the succeeding roll 41 is accomplished by similar means under the control o f the same shaft. In accordance with the specific embodiment of the invention herein described, the automatic coupling of the shaft 124 to the main transmission shaft is effected in the following manner: The shaft 104 hS B Srew mentis similar to the one described in con-l nection with Fig. 3 and numbered 30, 31 and 32. A sleeve 113 is provided with an extending finger 114 adapted to engage the elbow7 115. The wheel 128. provided with spirally arranged teeth is freely'mounted on shaft 109 and carries a clutch member 140. The clutch member 140 is arranged to engage the cooperating clutch member 116 that is mounted on the shaft 109 and is rotatable therewith. Under the control of a spring 117, these clutch members are normally `in engagement with each other. The two clutch members may be separated by means of a lever 118 arranged to push back the member 116. The lever 118 is freed in response to the engagement of the elbow 115 by the tinger 114', whereupon the roll 41 is set in motion. It will be seen therefore, that counting from the time when the preceding roll is started, lthe starting of the next roll depends on the positioning of half nut` 111 on the'rack 110. By means of this arrangement the length of ribbon to be submerged be-` tween two feeding rolls may be predetermined. If it is desired to modify this length during the operation of the machine, the following operations must be performed: To lengthen it; the lower feeding roll mustv be held stationary by actuating the associated lever 118. To shorten it; the lower roll is uncoupled, and by means of a handle 139 attached to the shaft of the roll (or operating this shaft through the agency of a speed-up gearing) the rollis rotated at a y greater speed than the preceding roll. Each be provided with a set of mechanism like the one described in connection with feeding rolls 21 and 4:1. These sets of mechanisms constitute the ensembles I, II, III, etc.

roll might The troughs that form a part 0f the de-,

veloping machine, and particularly theV trough or troughs 'containing the developing iluid, have a relatively long tubular siphon arrangement on any part of the screw threaded yfor coupling the driving shape, and are connected by means of two holes. one in the lower and the other in the upper part of the trough, with the tank containing the bath. By means of thermothe liquid may be kept in circulation. In the winter, the liquid is heated by means of an electrical resistance traversed by a current of variable strength, and in the summer, the liquid is cooled by passing it through a refrigerator. The average .temperature may be determined by means of a thermometer suitably located with respect to the troughs. Obviously, if the capacity of the trough is suiiicient, the tank may be eliminated and the thermo- Siphon tubing connected only with the temperature controlling devices.

It will clearly appear to those skilled in the art that, the construction may be modiiied in variousways Without departing from the spirit of the invention. The above described arrangements are merely for the purpose of exemplifying the invention and not for limiting the scope thereof.

Having described my invention, claim is:

1.` In apparatus for developing photographic ribbons, a developing tank, feeding rolls, a common driving means for all of said rolls, means for coupling each of rolls to the driving means, and means for effecting the coupling between the driving means and certain of the rolls at different times.

Y 2. In apparatus for developing photographic ribbons, a developing tank, feeding rolls, means for driving the rolls including a drive shaft, a shaft for-each roll and sets of coupling members for the rolls, each of said sets comprising members operatively connected to the drive shaft, and one of the .roll shafts `respectively, and controlling means for placing said coupling members into engagement at predetermined intervals.

3. In apparatus for developing photographic ribbons, a developing tank, feeding rolls7 each fastened on a separate shaft, a driving shaft, a pluralit of gears on the driving shaft, each of sai roll shafts having a gear cooperating with gears, coupling means on what I said drive shaft gears `to the roll shafts and means operated by the roll shaft of a preceding rolll for operating the coupling means of t predetermined movement of said precedlng 1oll. 1 FERNAND CARBENAY.

one of said driving.

a subsequent roll after a 

